


A Dial Tone

by GasolineGhuleh



Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: Gen, Phone Calls, phone games, trivia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:29:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27214210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GasolineGhuleh/pseuds/GasolineGhuleh
Summary: When Novitiate Madelaine wakes up in the night to a phone call, things only get weirder from there... Can she answer all of the mysterious callers trivia questions before time runs out? Or will she choke up?
Comments: 6
Kudos: 14
Collections: Scary Stories To Tell In The Abbey





	A Dial Tone

**Author's Note:**

> No triggers here!

Sister Madelaine awakes with a start, sitting up straight in bed quickly. It takes her a moment to realize what woke her up as her eyes cast around the room curiously. The phone rings a second time and she turns towards it blearily before moving a hand towards it. She lifts the receiver to her ear and speaks, her voice thick with sleep and mild confusion. 

“Hello?” Madelaine brings one hand up, rubbing her eyes in turns as she listens. Heavy breathing comes through the other line, crackly with static. She waits a moment before addressing the person again. “Hello? Novitiate Madelaine speaking.” 

“Let’s play a game, Madelaine.” The voice on the other end isn’t instantly recognisable to her, and she sits up a bit straight in bed, suddenly wide awake. “How long have you been within the Clergy?”

“I… two months. Who is this?” she asks quickly, one hand gripping tightly to her pillow as she drags it around her body and onto her lap. Feeling braver, she asks the person again, her voice growing stronger. “I said who is this? This is a private number and extension--”

“That matters not. What matters is that I know who you are, Madelaine.” The person sighs deeply before continuing. “I’ve seen you around the Abbey… and I want to know you better. In a more… formative way.”

“Formative way? What do you mean?” Madelaine scoots farther back on her bed and rests her back against the headboard, her eyes never stopping as they move from the shadows to the windows and back. 

“Glad to see you’ve gotten comfortable, hm? Let’s play a game, sorella.” The voice on the other is soft, almost singsong like and it lulls her into a false sense of security. Madelaine can feel herself relaxing a little as the man continues to speak to her. “You’ve been in our flock for two months, si? Let’s see how much you know.” She perks up a little at the prospect of trivia before realizing the first thing he said. 

“Wait how did you know I moved? Are you-- Can you see me?” Madelaine straightens, looking towards her window even as she keeps the phone close to her ear. The voice on the other end chuckles darkly and a chill runs down her spine, hair on the back of her neck standing on end at the sound. 

“Now, now, little Miss Crumbles… Do you agree to my game?” The voice falls silent, expectant. Madelaine’s heart pounds in her chest-- her last name was forsaken on the day that she took her vows. No one within the Clergy was supposed to know it… The past was of no matter once you dedicated yourself to the Church, wasn’t it? With no more hesitation, she answers.

“Yes. I agree. What are the stakes?” She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath as the voice lays out the rules. 

“I will ask you something that you should know at this point in your training. Get all of them correct, and you’ll be promoted beyond your wildest dreams. Miss a question…” He pauses. 

“What happens if I get one wrong?”

“I’d suggest that you do not, Novitiate.” A deep breath crackles through the receiver before he speaks again. “Who is the matron of the Emeritus Church?” Madelaine struggles to hold back a triumphant laugh. A softball question!

“Lilith, mother of demons,” she answers confidently. The voice hums his approval, clicking his tongue slightly before moving on.

“Good. Which of the Dark Eminences that have served us has won world wide recognition?” There’s a palpable sense of pride in the voice, and Madelaine rolls her eyes as she gives her answer.

“His Dark Eminence Papa Emeritus the Third won a Grammy in the year 2018 for his work on the Ghost project,” she entones, practically reciting her textbook word for word. On the other side of the phone, the voice laughs with glee before praising her.

“Very good, cara! A smart girl, si? Let’s make it harder. Which is the demon in charge of greed, and why is he a center peace for this church?” Silence stretches on as Madelaine’s mind races through the possibilities-- she’s learned so many demons in the past few days… which one?? “Tick tock, Novitiate. I suggest that you do not be a disappointment to me.”

“I don’t even know who you are!” she shouts, gripping the phone in both hands as she sweats nervously. Her eyes roam over the stack of books, and a brief flash of green and silver reminds her. “Mammon! Because greed lends itself to pride, which is the most Unholy of sins!”

“...A passable answer.” There’s the sound of some papers rustling, and a /tink, tink, tink/ noise that sets Madelaine’s teeth on edge. The sound reminds her of a knife against a porcelain plate. “Let’s try a harder one. Some translation, I think. Tell me what the Catholic equivalent to ’per aspera ad infiri’ is, little pet.” The sound starts up again and Madelaine whines as she fidgets, brain running a million miles an hour.

“From hardships… to…” She taps her long fingernail on her front tooth, cogs turning desperately. “The stars!” she finally shouts, elation soaring through her chest. She’s not sure what the punishment is for getting these wrong, but this must be some kind of Clergy test… right?

“Argh!” The man growls his frustration and the tinking sound is halted by a loud thud, followed by what sounds like nails sliding down a plank of wood. “Fine. Last question, cara. Our Lord’s name was wrongly translated in their texts… what was it translated to?”

“Oh! Morning Star!” Madelaine shouts, glee filling her body as she answers. She got them all right, and now she’ll be rewarded, right? Silence from the other end of the phone line.

“Wrong answer.” The call ends abruptly, leaving Madelaine listening to the abrasive beep of a disconnected call. She pulls the receiver away from her ear and looks at it in confusion before setting it back down on its cradle. Out of curiosity, she lifts it once more and attempts to dial back.

“We’re sorry, the number you have dialed has been disconnected. BEEP. We’re sorry--” Madelaine hangs up the phone swiftly and clutches her hands to her chest, looking out her window as her heartbeat pounds in her ears. For a brief moment, she swears she can see a figure just outside her window. As she draws her blankets up her body towards her face, lightning flashes. The yard outside is empty-- silent. 

As soon as she begins to relax, there’s a sound at her door. Something sliding along the oaken panels and tap tap tapping on the iron rivets that hold it together. A booming knock sounds, making her jump and moan to herself in sudden fear. Scratches drag along her door towards the handle, where they stop. The unmistakable sound of something being inserted into the lock makes the hair on her arms stand up, her chest tightening as the door is unlocked. 

It swings open slowly to a darkened hallway, the glint of a single white eye staring at her from the darkness. Clawed gloves reach towards her as a malicious smile cuts the papal paint in two.

“Wrong answer.”


End file.
